MS-763: Rabbi Herbert A. Friedman Collection, 1930-2004. Series I: Wexner Heritage Foundation, 1947-2004. Subseries 1: General Files, 1949-2004. Box Folder 63 14 Holocaust Survivors Memoirs Project. 1995-2000, undated. For more information on this collection, please see the finding aid on the American Jewish Archives website. 3101 Clifton Ave, Cincinnati, Ohio 45220 513.487.3000 AmericanJewishArchives.org The We.'<.ller Heritage Foundation 551 Maaison Avenu .. New York. New York 10022 212 355 6115 Fax 2·2 751 r39 Henry & Bella Tovey 1004 S. Belgrade Road SilverSpring, 110 20902 November 10, 2000 Dear Mr. & Mrs. Tovey, Thank you for responding to our letter about sendiing your story to the Holocaust Survivors Memoirs Project at the World Jewish Congress. I am writing to you to confirm that we received both ofyour speeches and we will forward them to the World Jewish Congress in your names. This is an important project that will help preserve the testimonies of you and other survivors, so the lessons learned and the people who perished during the Holocaust are never forgotten. Both of you have very inspiring stories. It is amazing that after all that you both went threw, the ghettos, cattle cars, and concentration camps, that you found a belief in Judaism and G-d. I am sure that your journey back to Judaism was an extremely difficult struggle. Through survivors written testimonies like both of yours, we will forever have eyewitness accounts of the horrors of the Holocaust and learn from it so nothing like the Holocaust will ever happen again. Again, we want to thank you for sharing your story. If you have any other questions or concerns, please feel free to call me, Jamie Goldberg, Rabbi Herbert Friedman's assistant, at 212-3,55-6115. You may also contact Ms. Yudin at the Holocaust Survivors Memoirs Project at 914-722-1880. I hope you and your family are having a happy and healthy New Year. B' Shalom, Jamie Goldberg A note.from Henri & Bella T~vey N.:>vC/J..~ - l ~kJ.9 (..( (.n... se~£ ·J- i.u ~ -t L'Jt.'-1CJe!> cUvd- s/e~ w\'6_ ~ WW rM~h ~ 4-vfoc:.~~ 1 ie-s.h \M O\A.-( f:5 • ~ [70, t'f lo~ c!.o t.M:>\. ~ · ~ '$(;..._\}. .... \~ \,(~ cl(:U. c(~tA.\.,{c . pf~s~ s~ ,· ~ Jtu_ s'-o1 ,·LA owt_ "-~ . H-· 5 t,jh. vr WHC's 50th Ann1versar·1 oi' r.ne .:-ncJ or WW2 r·1;:iv s. 1995 {f I 'N?.5 I icera{~d trorn i:oncentrJt ion camo Woebb~ 1in Dy Uw 8~n<' - trt)ornie- 01v1s1on or the un1tetj Stat~~- Army on the third or r-1~y . 1945 ~ 1jnJy, 1 a1ctn't 1<now n I was oorn in Lcidz, in Doland. Evactly one wee'!( att~r the war orc"'e out. on September 8, 1939. German troops entered the city 1 was 15 Yf!?.rs old WV11thm a few monUY3 rne .Jews or Loaz were herded into a Ghetto Tnere were some l 65.000 of l.IS. cr0wded into 1 and 1/2 souare m1 les Fooa wa'3 scarer.. hygienic conait1ons {ffrlble Dysentery. tyonu5, t·/pho1d fever. were rampanr. v ~rv soon we were no longer 160,000 (? 1n 1942 the Ghetto Dei:ame a laoor carnp Those wno could not wc1 ·~K -- the childrl;\n, the olcl. the:. ick -- were oeporr.eo to the Chelmno exterr.1mat10n campff1n me :umrn~r oi 1944 the Gnetto of Lodz was I iou10ateo 7 nose wrio survweo until tnen w~re '3e-nt ro .o..uschwirz (f r·1y parents ""ere muroer~ct m ;...J:chwnz 1 was 3ent to .3 latior car10 m eraunscm.v.;i1q, m Germany fr They re1j us l~ttli:o and wor~.ed us l)ard. Dut we feolt tnat the end car·not be tar awav Toward the eno c.t l 94~ rrie British A1rf orce started to oorr.t1 e.raun5chwe1q. on a reoular- oas15, and the Germans offerea verv. little resistance \Ve felt that 1i we could survive one more day, one mc1re night, we would be I iberatNJ And tnen. we dreamt. we would be taken somev.mere. too warm. clean place. wnere we could bathe for nours ir1 big tut1s full of hot wat er, wnere we would be gwen clean clothes, and above all, wnere we v-. ould be 91ven rood Lots and lots of food ,W Actually. 1 nao a oay almost l11te that m trte dream wn1le I was st1 !l in the camp An a1r raw caused severa l houses near the f actorv m wh1ch we worl<eG to 19nne Our SS guarl'.ls decuJed to send us mto the DtJrnmg bltlldwgs to orm9 down clothing, OE"ddmg. and anything else of value Jett behmd by tne fleiemg people 1 1Nas sent mto a s1x-story building which was oy that t1me prt-ny v.;r:ll engaged m f 1re, part1cuiarly the upper stories I first tried me ao:irtments on the lo\ver leve Is. but mey were locked and I had to go up as high a: th~ 4th rloor The heat was mtense th~re, but when I opened the ftrst door I found rnyse If in a., 1tcnen which a f am1 ly must have abandoned m me mw11e of a meal ~nere v.,ias breao on me.,raoie, ano butter --or margarine -- ;,3m --two 1~mds or Jam - - 3no min· Anctset me down at that table -- n was ~ven coveri?d 4 w1tri a table clorn -- and I cut nwself a big sllce of oreao. spreaa r·1argarme on n, men 1arn. and the otner Jam, and I ate .. ~ n11s was tne f 1r:;t t1me 1 wasn't nun~1ry in 5 y~ars1 ~ A ff!w weeks later the allied arm1~s came closer r.o e.raunscn\.vetg .:mo 11,oe wr.rc: HT '5 tali.. DC WHC's sotn Anniversary or n·.e P.-nd or· 1w2 r·1ay 5, I 995 ~vai:uat~ 1j 'vl;:; v... 1 s-rt:- put on tra111::. , i:att le trams, 1jf cc,ursi:-. 1:rry,1..: :ti:1j l 1i~ i:­ sardmes ir. 3 can. W.:: wer~ tat ~n first to trte- Herman r)cerring W ·:. ~rk. e <spe-llmg?' camp. an•j tr1i:r1to PT.vfnsbruerj<' (spelling?l. n·,eri: \i...·:-w'=rr;. t0IJ wi: ari:- b~1rig :.-:-nt to Lu~ti~t: (spe l ling ?>,a port 0r1 tr1i;; Baltic :.;:a, wr. i;.r~ w+: will bi: re1i:3sed t·:· tr1e Po:-0 Cross and s.::-r1t to Swedff1. Hob•)dy bi:-11':-ved t 1·,at. T~1e rrJmor had 1t that ttv:v. v1err:- qo1nq. t ei v1t us on an old ship and sin ~ it L·3r.;r wr; rr:1ur1d 01Jt th:j£ tt·~s was m fact stancjard 0perat1ng proi.:i:-d1Jrr:- for tt'1i: s: at tr.e en1J 0f th1= \Nar, t0 elimmats; 35 many v:1tn.;3ses to tht;lr crimes ;;s tr,ey •:1:u11. As it turned out. ne1tt·,er scenario played out. The trac~: 'S ahi:ad r:,· i:ur trairr w~r'= bombed, antj It r1ad tr:> st1jp. We w~r;; or 1jere1 out 3nd mari:i-.71j tv ti)~ neari:--:.t camp. lt wa: ci)ni:emntion camp W•)i::bb~lrn 1 was I it1i;ratt-a from ccncentration camp ~v0~bt1e I ir, t·Y th':? 8~n•j - 1rb0rni; D1v1310n of th~ 1Jn1tc•J States :..rrny 1::-n ti·,.;- th1rt1 of May, 19-!5 if Only, I tjjrjn't l<IV)W 1t (f\'Jor:-NY:lin. unltl' ~ A.usr.hwitz. had no long history. It w.Js establ:sh~d just~ few m1:nth-:: l:'t>f ore W7 came in But wr1i le 1t did not have the> ga;. chaml:'ers and cremati!ri.:.i of .A.uschv.:it::, it was a very ~ff ic1ent death camp jus;. the same A.s general Gavin. the Commanding Officer of the 82nd Airtiorne put 1t, "Yo1J could srn ell the W::-et,belin concentration .:amp lone... b~fore y0u could see 1t. And seeing 1t was more than a human t:ein9 could stand. Even after three years of wJr 1t brought t~ars to my ey-:-3. "There "Ner~ hundreds of dead about tt·,e grounds and in tr·-: tarpaper­ covi:red shac ~ · s . In the corner 0f tr11: stoc~: ade was an at 3ndoned qu.Jrry into wh1ch the 1jaily staci-:s of cadavers i.vere bulld1:z:d It was obvious they could not tell the livlng from the dead "Llving skelHons were scattered about, the I ivlng dt 3t1fl]Uished from the dead only by their somewhat greenish sk.in, m contr a5t to the blue-black ~·k in of the dead. u WI was liberated from concentration camp Woet!belin by the 82nd .:..irborne Division of the Um ted States A.rmy on the third of !"lay, 1945. t\> Only, I 1jidn 1t know ir.. \\ Y0u se~ . I didn't ~· now it because I was one of the living s.k.eleton; d1strngu1shable from the dead only by the somP.what gr.::eni sh col :ir of their skm LIVING TIIROUGH 1HE HOLOCAUST For many years after the war I found it impossible to address a group of people and to talk about my experiences during the holocaust Oh, sometimes i would talk to my very close friends, sometimes i would answer questions asked by my children. I would even say something to my students in the class when there was a compelling reason.